These bookshops let Chinese readers question their country - now the doors are closing

ByAbel U

BBC Chinese, Reporting fromHong Kong

When Chen Zhu heads to Hong Kong from mainland China each month, there's 1 spot she ever goes: Hunter Bookstore.

Founded 4 years agone by a erstwhile councillor, the autarkic bookshop has earned a estimation for stocking what authorities would see delicate books - accounts of Hong Kong's pro-democracy campaigners to celebrated allegories connected authoritarianism, specified arsenic George Orwell's Animal Farm oregon Hajime Isayama's Manga bid Attack connected Titan.

It's a abbreviated travel from Zhu's location successful Guangzhou connected China's confederate seashore to the crowded thoroughfare successful Hong Kong's Sham Shui Po district, wherever Hunter is sandwiched betwixt cloth sellers, garages and trendy cafes.

But, for the 23-year-old, it is besides a transition into a different, freer satellite - wherever she tin find answers to forbidden questions.

When she learned the bookshop had been raided by constabulary successful precocious June, Zhu broke into tears: "I was devastated."

Hong Kong saw a roar successful autarkic bookshops aft immense pro-democracy protests rocked the metropolis successful 2019. But it has been progressively hard for them to past arsenic China's power implicit the metropolis has grown.

While Beijing defends its far-reaching National Security Law (NSL) arsenic indispensable for stability, galore Hong Kongers and rights groups reason it has crushed escaped speech. Thousands of locals, including activists and erstwhile lawmakers, person near successful caller years, arsenic pugnacious caller information laws person led to a slew of arrests and convictions.

When constabulary searched Hunter Bookstore connected 24 June, they accused proprietor Letitia Wong, 33, and a 32-year-old man, of violating those laws and arrested them for sedition and wealth laundering. They contradict the charges and person since been released connected bail.

In March, they arrested the proprietor of Book Punch, on with 3 employees connected the aforesaid charges, and reportedly seized copies of a biography connected Jimmy Lai, the jailed ideology campaigner.

On 15 July, erstwhile the yearly Hong Kong Book Fair opened, nationalist information constabulary searched 2 much autarkic bookshops, Greenfield Bookstore and Have a Nice Stay, arresting 5 radical for sedition. They, too, person been released connected bail.

At the extremity of the period Greenfield posted connected societal media, saying: "Our store volition beryllium closing aft our lease expires. Thank you for walking with us, done upwind and rain, for 50 years since our opening." It was the 3rd autarkic bookshop to unopen wrong a month.

These bookshops person agelong had a loyal pursuing not conscionable successful Hong Kong, but besides among galore mainland Chinese readers. Some similar Zhu question to the metropolis successful hunt of a azygous book.

For 19-year-old Li from Shanghai, who didn't springiness her archetypal name, these are places wherever she "can spot truthful galore possibilities, and wherever existing ideas tin beryllium challenged". Others treasure them arsenic spaces that connection a consciousness of state and assemblage they consciousness is missing connected the mainland.

Now they fearfulness China is eroding that tone successful Hong Kong too.

When Zhu began assemblage successful 2021, she became progressively funny astir lesser-discussed chapters of Chinese past - specified arsenic the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, a taboo taxable that has been scrubbed disconnected the country's tightly controlled internet.

The monolithic student-led protests ended successful a bloody service crackdown whose toll is inactive contested. Beijing said astatine the clip that 200 civilians died, but according to de-classified UK diplomatic cables, astatine slightest 10,000 radical were killed.

Zhu sought retired films which interaction connected the era-defining event, but neither epic romance Summer Palace nor the secretly filmed cheery play Lan Yu could fulfill her curiosity.

She became acceptable connected tracking down The Unburned Book by Taiwanese writer Yang Du, a bittersweet reflection connected protesters who aboriginal went into exile.

In 2023, arsenic soon arsenic the China-Hong Kong borderline reopened aft the pandemic she made her mode to Hong Kong to find it.

This was erstwhile the city's autarkic bookshops were taking off. People were sharing walking routes online, implicit with neighbourhood guides and curated recommendations.

In bustling Mong Kok determination was Luck Win, known for its generous discounts, and Greenfield, with its packed floor-to-ceiling shelves. A abbreviated locomotion distant were the cosy Have a Nice Stay, founded by erstwhile journalists, which held fashionable late-night speechmaking sessions, and Elmbook, whose cramped but beloved shelves made regulars consciousness similar they were connected a treasure hunt.

Then determination was Book Punch connected trendy Tai Nan Street, with a postulation arsenic defiant arsenic its motto, "one punch to aftermath the reader", and the nutrient lovers' favourite, Word by Word successful historical Wan Chai, and, of course, Hunter, with a sofa extracurricular wherever passers-by tin instrumentality a break.

That's wherever Zhu found The Unburned Book. She had tried - and failed - successful different stores, truthful she was amazed erstwhile she yet spotted it.

Hong Kong, erstwhile a refuge for those fleeing China station 1989, commemorated the killings each twelvemonth with a vigil. They gradually disappeared arsenic the caller laws targeted governmental gatherings.

Still, erstwhile Chris, 20, whose sanction we person changed, travelled to Hong Kong successful aboriginal June, helium recovered that 1 bookstore was displaying applicable books, achromatic candles and rolls of masking portion printed with the Roman numerals "VI-IV" - 6-4, a coded mode of representing the 4 June anniversary.

These young radical whitethorn not beryllium from Hong Kong, but they picture feeling a heavy consciousness of belonging successful these bookshops: politically vibrant spaces that prosecute with the past their governments would alternatively they forget.

But it's much than conscionable astir the books.

Li visited Hong Kong during the Lunar New Year earlier this year, months aft a monolithic flat blaze successful the north-eastern Tai Po territory claimed 168 lives.

At Hunter Bookstore, she discovered a partition covered successful achromatic sticky notes, wherever visitors had near messages of encouragement for those affected by the tragedy.

Li says this consciousness of assemblage is hard to find successful mainland China. She says portion they person connection boards determination too, they wouldn't beryllium focused connected solidarity with victims of 1 peculiar incident, possibly due to the fact that authorities are wary of immoderate outpouring of nationalist sentiment. "People tin lone explicit themselves indirectly," Li says.

She was arsenic struck by different tiny detail: handwritten notes near by unit alongside the books. Using sticky notes, booksellers had shared reflections connected books they had work oregon highlighted passages they recovered peculiarly meaningful. It's not thing she had ever seen backmost home.

Zhu experiences thing similar. "We each emotion books. We each worth autarkic bookshops. That's wherefore we take to bargain books here."

She seldom speaks to strangers portion browsing, but she ne'er feels similar an outsider. The books and events the shops big springiness her the feeling she's escaped to determination with "at slightest a small state of expression".

"You've near mainland China behind. Of course, you cognize [this] state has its limits. But it's inactive amended than not being capable to accidental thing astatine all."

But present Zhu tin consciousness this state being curtailed.

She says she finds herself encountering authorities much often successful Hong Kong than successful mainland China. At 1 bookshop event, she recalls authorities officials entering the premises. "They conscionable sat determination listening alongside us."

Increasing raids person not lone targeted explicitly governmental shops, according to a bookseller who asked not to beryllium identified due to the fact that of imaginable repercussions.

"Luck Win Bookstore and Elmbook person ever kept a precise debased profile," the bookseller says.

"They seldom marque nationalist statements oregon organise events. I genuinely can't deliberation of thing they could person done to offend the government."

In the weeks starring up to this year's publication fair, some shops were criticised successful Wen Wei Po, a paper controlled by Beijing's liaison authorities successful Hong Kong.

The insubstantial accused them of selling books promoting "soft resistance". This included The Hong Kong Diaries by the past politician of Hong Kong, Chris Patten, earlier the metropolis returned to Chinese rule, and 300 Short Essays by precocious Apple Daily columnist Lee Yee. The paper was shuttered and respective elder staff, including its proprietor Jimmy Lai, were jailed for violating the caller information laws.

"The authorities don't privation radical to cognize precisely wherever the boundaries are," says Tong Kin-long of University College London. "They privation radical to enactment retired the reddish lines for themselves, oregon to censor themselves earlier crossing them."

Watching these changes unfold successful Hong Kong has felt strangely acquainted to a antheral we are calling K, successful his 30s from Sichuan.

He remembers a clip erstwhile mainland China's bookshops were besides vibrant spaces for nationalist discussion. Liberal books and magazines would beryllium prominently displayed. Bookshops regularly hosted talks and discussions. But astir 2015, helium began to announcement a gradual tightening.

At archetypal it was books astir the country's leaders. But past little evidently delicate books started disappearing. Public events became little frequent, and the ambiance changed.

Zhu has a person who presently runs a bookshop successful Guangzhou. She says constabulary occasionally sojourn the store to harass the bookseller. During movie screenings organised by the bookshop, the energy has adjacent been chopped off.

"Hong Kong," she says, "should beryllium a freer place".

Still, mainland Chinese readers are keen connected bringing books location from Hong Kong, adjacent though customs authorities tin confiscate those they deem harmful to nationalist sovereignty, information oregon unity.

K feels anxious each clip helium returns from Hong Kong. He chooses busier borderline crossings, avoids books prominently featuring politically delicate figures and has hidden books wrong his clothes, oregon heavy successful his luggage.

But that is nary longer his lone worry. "In the past, radical would simply think, 'If I can't bargain a publication successful mainland China, I'll spell to Hong Kong'. Now the feeling is different. You don't adjacent cognize which bookshops volition inactive beryllium present the adjacent clip you come."

A week aft learning it had been excluded from the Hong Kong Book Fair, Elmbook announced it would adjacent its carnal store successful April adjacent year. Soon afterwards, Have A Nice Stay said it would adjacent astatine the extremity of August, citing economical difficulties and unpredictable "red lines" implicit what worldly was considered problematic.

Many wrong Hong Kong's bookselling manufacture person grown pessimistic. Some judge things volition lone get worse earlier they get better.

But readers are not powerless, an manufacture insider says. "We tin inactive bargain books. We tin inactive read. And we tin inactive work a large galore books."

Chris was frightened aft proceeding astir the arrests astatine Hunter Bookstore, but helium says helium volition support going.

"Buying a publication has go a quiescent mode of showing support, and a quiescent signifier of resistance."